SB 32: Obstruction of Public Administration; convicted of doing violence in the obstruction or hindering of law enforcement officers; provide for a mandatory minimum sentence

Current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 16-10-24) punishes anyone who resists or obstructs a law enforcement officer, prison guard, jailer, correctional officer, probation officer, or game warden by 'offering or doing violence' to that officer, with penalties that rise from 1 to 5 years on a first offense up to 3 to 15 years on a third or later offense. Senate Bill 32 removes 'or doing' from that offering-violence provision and creates a new, separate subsection specifically for someone who does violence to the officer. That new offense is a felony punishable by 10 to 20 years in prison upon conviction, with no distinction for first, second, or subsequent offenses. The bill leaves untouched the existing penalties for throwing bodily fluids at an officer and the mandatory $300 fine, part of which is earmarked for the Georgia State Indemnification Fund. If passed, the change would repeal any conflicting laws and take effect once signed.

• Removes the phrase 'or doing' from the existing offering-violence offense in O.C.G.A. § 16-10-24(b)(1), leaving it to cover only offering violence to an officer.
• Creates a new subsection (b)(2) making it a distinct felony to actually do violence to a law enforcement officer, prison guard, jailer, correctional officer, probation officer, or game warden during their official duties.
• Sets a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of 20 years for anyone convicted under the new doing-violence provision, regardless of whether it is a first offense.
• Leaves unchanged the tiered penalties (1 to 5, 2 to 10, and 3 to 15 years) that still apply to offering violence without actually committing it.
• Leaves unchanged the separate felony and penalty for throwing bodily fluids at an officer and the mandatory $300 fine tied to the Georgia State Indemnification Fund.

People charged with resisting or obstructing law enforcement officers, prison guards, jailers, correctional officers, probation officers, or game wardens through physical violence would face this new law. It also affects prosecutors, judges, and the corrections system, since it changes sentencing options and removes judicial discretion to impose less than 10 years for this specific offense.

Anyone convicted of actually doing violence to a covered officer would face a mandatory decade in prison at minimum, even on a first offense, a sharp increase from the current 1 to 5 year range. This shifts significant sentencing power from judges to a fixed statutory floor for this category of crime.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 16-10-24(b)(1) to remove 'or doing' violence, narrowing that subsection to cover only offering violence to an officer.
• Section 1 adds new subsection (b)(2), making doing violence to a covered officer its own felony with a mandatory minimum of 10 years and maximum of 20 years in prison.
• Existing subsection (c), covering throwing bodily fluids at an officer, and subsection (d), setting the $300 mandatory fine earmarked partly for the Georgia State Indemnification Fund, remain unchanged.
• Section 2 repeals any laws or parts of laws that conflict with the Act.

1. 2025-01-28Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2025-01-27Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)Primary sponsor
• Randy Robertson (R, SD-029)
• John Albers (R, SD-056)
• Timothy Bearden (R, SD-030)
• Greg Dolezal (R, SD-027)
• Steve Gooch (R, SD-051)
• Billy Hickman (R, SD-004)
• Chuck Payne (R, SD-054)
• Kay Kirkpatrick (R, SD-032)
• Matt Brass (R, SD-006)
• Mike Hodges (R, SD-003)
• Max Burns (R, SD-023)
• Marty Harbin (R, SD-016)
• Frank Ginn (R, SD-047)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)
• Clint Dixon (R, SD-045)
• Bill Cowsert (R, SD-046)

• law enforcement
• criminal sentencing
• mandatory minimums
• obstruction of officers
• public safety